As a seller, we know you’re dealing with orders from multiple platforms all at once. By moving your existing retail relationships to CREOATE, you can minimise the time you spend in spreadsheets, and maximise the time you spend doing what you do best.
But besides sheer convenience, inviting (aka referring) your retailers to CREOATE comes with a range of other benefits for both of you, too. In this guide we’ll walk you through exactly what ‘counts’ as a referral, the benefits of referring your retailers, and some tips on how to do this. Some of them are so passive and simple, you can set them up today and then completely forget about them!
On this page
- So first — what even is a referral?
- Why should I invite my retailers to CREOATE?
- How do I refer retailers?
- Adding a link to your website
- Taking orders at trade shows
- Sharing on social media
So first — what even is a referral?
When a seller refers a retailer (aka buyer) to CREOATE, it means the retailer signs up to shop through CREOATE via the seller’s unique referral link. These might be retailers the seller already knows well and has worked with before, potential prospects whose contact information they have on file, or someone who came across their brand and clicked on their unique CREOATE referral link on their own website, or social media.
Why should I invite my retailers to CREOATE?
Referring your retailers comes with a number of benefits for both of you:
1. There’s a welcome offer for invited retailers
Retailers who you have referred to CREOATE get a welcome discount of 20% off using a code we'll send them once they create their account.
What does this mean for you? It basically means you can offer retailers 20% off your products, at no cost to you.
2. Free returns & shipping, on us
When you, a seller, ask your retailers to order through CREOATE, the shipping is arranged (and paid for!) on your behalf. It’s also often free for your retailer, subject to a minimum spend which you can check here.
We take care of the shipping logistics, too. We generate a label for you, and arrange for the order to be collected — all you need to do is print your label, package your goods and book a slot. We even handle cross-border paperwork where applicable.
If your retailer finds they’ve overstocked your products, they can also return what doesn’t sell in 60 days for a refund (although N.B. this only applies to the first time a retailer orders from a brand through CREOATE). If your retailer returns products, they get a refund or partial from us, but you are still paid in full.
3. Pay no commission on orders from your invited retailers
If you invite a retailer to shop on CREOATE, and they join with your unique referral link, you will never pay commission on orders from that retailer. It’s 0%, forever.
4. The more retailers you invite, the better you rank
Ever wondered how we decide the order of brands on our category pages, and New In page? The order is calculated automatically based on a number of factors, including:
- How much traffic your store page gets from outside of CREOATE
- How many people come back to reorder from you
- How quickly and reliably you turn around orders
- How many retailers you invite to CREOATE, and how many go on to sign up via your link
So referring more retailers to CREOATE directly helps your store rank better on the site, too. And it’s also likely to bring more external traffic, which will give you a further boost.
How do I refer retailers?
We’re glad you asked! You can encourage your retail contacts (old and new!) to shop wholesale through your CREOATE store across any of your normal sales channels — see tips on the main ones below. But first, let’s take a look at how to find your unique link, and the referral offer code.
💡 Top tip: If you have already worked with a retailer but they already have a CREOATE account, don’t worry — you can still enjoy many of the benefits above by sending us proof that you have already been in business together. The same applies if a retailer accidentally forgot to use your unique link when signing up.
Finding your link & the referral offer
- Log into your dashboard
- Go to Email Marketing
- Scroll to ‘Share your link’
This is your unique referral link, and you can ‘Click to Copy’ and use this for referring your customers.
Reaching out to retailers via email
Email is a simple, free and effective way to reach out to your existing retailers and prospects to ask them to shop via your CREOATE store.
You have two options here. You can either use CREOATE’s own inbuilt email marketing tool, or you can add a link into an email to send via your own tool.
1. Using the CREOATE email marketing tool
If you want to use the CREOATE email marketing tool, go to the Email Marketing tab in your dashboard. Here, we have an automated email you can send out to your retail contacts, and you can add a personalised message at the start. Follow the instructions on the page to either add your contacts one by one, or upload in bulk via a spreadsheet.
2. Using your own email campaigns tool
If you’d rather run your own email campaigns, that works too. Simply go to the Email Marketing tab in your dashboard, find your code, and embed it into your email wherever it best fits the content.
Adding a link to your website
Adding a link to your website is an easy way to send new retail faces to your CREOATE store.
Whether we’re talking about B2B or B2C, one thing doesn’t change; you’re dealing with humans, and they want the easiest path to purchase possible. So if we compare asking them to fill out a form and wait for a reply, to easily being able to make an order online (and enjoy 20% off as a sweetener) you can be sure which option they’re going to take.
You can link to your CREOATE store from your website in one of two ways.
1. Add a hyperlink
The simplest way to link to your CREOATE store from your website is simply to add a little bit of text to your Contact page (or a dedicated Wholesale one, if you have it) encouraging retailers to shop wholesale directly through your CREOATE store, and letting them know that they can get up to £300 off as part of their welcome discount. We’ve put together a quick guide to best practices when linking back to your CREOATE store to ensure you’re squeezing the most SEO value out of it, too.
Take your linking one step further and create a whole section for your CREOATE orders! We love this example from Phoenix Fitness
2. Use our widget
Generate your own unique code to embed into your website to add a special CREOATE order section which is populated with all your brand info. Here’s how.
Here's the CREOATE widget sitting pretty on LoofCo's website
Taking orders at trade shows
Heading to a trade show? Use a free QR code generator like this one to convert your unique link into a QR code. From there, you can either include it as part of your stand, or better still print up nice flyers, business cards, or catalogues to hand out at the event. This gives a nice, slick way for your new retail contacts to browse — and hopefully order from — your wholesale shop.
Top tip: Many ‘free’ QR code generators don’t actually stay free — they may have a free trial which will expire, and you’ll then need to subscribe to keep your QR code active. It’s worth double-checking before you use a tool, and thinking about how long you’ll actually need the code to be active.
Sharing on social media
We love to see brands tagging us when they join CREOATE. And we have created a set of assets for exactly that moment — download them here, and shout our new partnership from the rooftops!
Go one step further by adding your CREOATE referral link to a button in your Instagram linkinbio, or equivalent.
And don't forget LinkedIn! Montezuma's nailed it with this simple post
And there you have it — a quick referral rundown. Now go forth, and refer!
Still got questions? Check out our referral FAQs, or drop our team a message on Live Chat.
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